well, there are several ways to do it, as you can probably see from most of the posts on here. usually, i use the cheater method, and use the remnants of lip balm that are left in the tube, little pieces of lipstick in colors that didn't work for me, crayons, petroleum jelly, beeswax, a little bit of peppermint oil or honey, and the list goes on. i just generally guesstimate the proper consistency.

what you need:

*several old lipbalms that have been entirely used up*some lipsticks that maybe didn't work out for you*some old crayons in lipstick looking colors*some beeswax*a little petroleum jelly*a butter knife*a thick glass/pyrex jar or cup thing (i usually use a nice glass measuring cup, but you don't have to)*a saucepan*some water*some empty tubes or lipgloss pots

first, you place the glass container in the sauce pan, and fill around it with water. then you scrape out the lip balm from their tubes and put it in the glass container. set the saucepan with the glass container and water on the stove and turn it up to medium heat. take a few small chunks of the lipstick and a few small chunks of the crayons, keeping an eye for color mixing. think about what color lip junk you want. do you want something berry colored, brick red, coral, pink? add the small chunks to the lip balm in the glass container. another thing you must think about is consistency. if you want it to be more of a lip gloss, perhaps kept in a little pot for lipgloss, add a little bit of petroleum jelly. if you want it to be more of a lipstick or tube, put in a little bit of beeswax. next, you keep an eye on the heat and the water. you want it to be simmering, so that the ingredients in the glass container will all melt together. when they have all melted together, turn off the stove, and pour the liquid into the tubes or lipgloss pots. then place them into the freezer until they've hardened all the way through. then you just apply and see if you like the color and whatnot. sometimes it takes a little bit of experimentation and guesswork to figure it out, but it shouldn't take long before you have figured out how to make some really awesome lip stuff. and this way, you never waste lipstick or lipbalm! recycle, darling. mother earth will love you.

i mix a cup or so of granulated white sugar with a bunch of olive oil until it makes a sort of paste. then i add in a little raw sugar to get the really scrubby bits, and i add some lemon juice for those lovely citric acid effects, and also because olive oil and sugar don't smell super pretty on their own. then you just hop in the shower without turning it on yet, and slather it on all over yourself. rinse it off, and your skin will be entirely moisturized from the olive oil, and all your dead skin will be sloughed off from the sugar.

this is a really great basic recipe, and you can even add in other ingredients to make it less basic. you can add in powdered milk, because lactic acid is also good for your skin. honey is wonderful for the skin, but it takes a little extra mixing. you could also add oatmeal it's also really lovely for your skin.

what not to add:coffee grounds can add some more grainy loveliness, but i wouldn't suggest it because it makes a horrible mess in your shower. the sugar at least dissolves and rinses off easily. i would NOT suggest using salt. some people like it, i guess, but leave salt for bath salts, because i think it's too abrasive as a scrub. i once added it to a scrub when i had a sunburn, and i learned the hard way... (i should have known... you know the saying "rub salt into wounds" and whatnot? it's true.) anyways, don't add salt if you've got sensitive skin or any scratches or ouchies or whatnot.

enjoy your lovely skin! it's great for the night before prom or the beach or something.